Integrated Water Resources Management

M.P.SINGH

Central Water Commission

New Delhi

Key Issues and Challenges in Water Resources

Management in India

Very High Temporal and Spatial variability of rainfall

4

Spatial Variation of Rainfall in INDIA

mm

Average 1,170

Max. 11,000 Mawsynram

Meghalaya

Min. 100 Western

Rajasthan

Precipitation during June to September 3000 BCM (75%)

Back

5

Temporal Variation of Rainfall

0

100

200

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400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

Win

ter

Mon

soon

(Jan

-Feb

)

Pre

Mon

soon

(Mar

-

May

Mon

soon

(Ju

n-S

ep)

Pos

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soon

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-Dec

)

Rai

nfa

ll in

mm

All India

75%

Back

• 17% of World’s population, 4% of renewable water

resource, 2.5% land area

• India is already under water stressed conditions (per

capita availability is less than 1700 m3/per person per

year)

• Most of the basins in western part and peninsular India

already water scarce (per capita availability is less than

1000 m3 per person per year)

• Small per capita reservoir storage as compared to

many countries

Key Issues and Challenges

7

Per Capita Water Availability

(National Average)

5177

2200

13401140

15451820

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

1951 1991 2001 2011 2025 2050

Wa

ter

Av

ail

ibil

ty (

Cu

bic

me

tre

pe

r

ca

pit

a p

er

ye

ar)

Water Scarcity Line

1000 cu. m. per

person per year

Water stress Line

1700 cu. m. per

person per year

0

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Ru

ssia

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str

alia

Bra

zil

US

A

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ain

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a

S A

fric

a

India

Ga

nga B

asin

Co

lora

do B

asin

Mu

rra

y D

arl

ing B

asin

Storage as % of annual availability in countries / basins

0

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7000

Ru

ssia

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ga B

asin

Per capita Live Storage (m3)

• Low water use efficiencies

•Over-exploitation of groundwater resources,

leading to rivers getting dry in lean season due to

no base flow contribution from depleted aquifers

•Poor water quality in many rivers due to lack of

treatment facilities

•Planning and implementation of water resources

projects in fragmented manner

Key Issues and Challenges (cont...)

What Is the Solution?

Integrated Water Resources Management

(IWRM)

What is IWRM?

“IWRM is a process which promotes the

coordinated development and management of

land, water and related resources in order to

maximize the resultant economic and social

welfare in an equitable manner without

compromising the sustainability of vital

ecosystems .”

--- Global Water Partnership (GWP-2000)

IWRM addresses the “three E’s”: Economic efficiency,

Environmental sustainability and social Equity,

including poverty reduction.

IWRM Takes into Account

1. Basin or Sub-basin as a basic planning unit.

2. All Sources of water like Surface water, Groundwater, soilmoisture, recycled water etc., their spatial and temporalvariation, quantity and quality

3. All stakeholders and sectoral interests (Domestic,Ecology, Irrigation, Industry, Power, Navigation,Recreation, Socio-cultural , Floods, etc)

4. Existing and ongoing projects and socio-techno-economicand environmental feasibility of new infrastructuredevelopment

5. Relevant policy and legal frameworks

6. Institutional aspects

National Water Policy on IWRM

The National Water Policy-2012, in several

provisions, has enumerated the integrated

perspective of water resources planning,

development and management.

One of the basic principles of the policy is that

planning, development and management of water

resources need to be governed by common

integrated perspective considering local, regional,

State and National context, having an

environmentally sound basis, keeping in view the

human, social and economic needs.

National Water Policy on IWRM (Contd)

There is a need for comprehensive legislation for optimum

development of inter- State rivers and river valleys to

facilitate inter-State coordination ensuring scientific

planning of land and water resources taking basin/sub-

basin as unit with unified perspectives of water in all its

forms (including precipitation, soil moisture, ground and

surface water) and ensuring holistic and balanced

development of both the catchment and the command

areas. Such legislation needs, inter alia, to deal with and

enable establishment of basin authorities, comprising party

States, with appropriate powers to plan, manage and

regulate utilization of water resource in the basins.

National Water Policy on IWRM (Contd)

Highlighting the importance of integrated water

resources management, the policy states that

Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM)

taking river basin / sub-basin as a unit should be the

main principle for planning, development and

management of water resources. The departments /

organizations at Centre / State Governments levels

should be restructured and made multi-disciplinary

accordingly.

IMPORTANT STEPS OF INDIA

TOWARDS IWRM

Basin Scale Studies

• Work of preparation of IWRM plan for Brahmani-Baitarni river

basin is currently going on with collaboration between CWC, IMD,

CGWB, NIH, CSIRO (Australia) and co-basin States (Odisha,

Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand).

• There is proposal to carry out IWRM study of 10 more basins.

• IIT Delhi has taken up a project for preparation of IWRM plan of

4 basins [Mahi, Narmada, Palar and Yamuna (up to Etawah)] in

association with eWater of Australia and CWC.

• A pilot study on reassessment of water resources

potential of Godavari and Brahmani-Baitarni basins using

space inputs has been jointly done by CWC and NRSC

• Study to be improved and being up-scaled in all the river

basins through regional offices of CWC.

• Damodar Valley System: Comprehensive System Studies

of Damodar-Barakar River system was carried out in CWC

in 2005 involving 5 reservoirs and a barrage to study the

basin response in respect of 2005 and 2025 demand

levels.

Basin Scale Studies …

THANK YOU